Strikes dent Hyundai Motor's Q3 profit

South Korea's largest automaker estimated that its global output in the final three months of this year would reach 1.2 million units, including 540,000 vehicles at factories in South Korea. That would put annual production at 4.38 million vehicles for 2012, higher than its 4.29 million target.

The increase helps fill a gap created after costly walkouts by workers at factories in South Korea dented output over the summer. Shares of the maker of the Avante and Sonata closed 3.9 percent higher.

“Hyundai is set to recover its lost output during the third quarter with increased capacity in China, Brazil and the United States as well as in South Korea. It couldn't sell more cars because its production couldn't catch up demand in the third quarter,” said Kim Yoon-ki, an analyst at Mirae Asset Securities.

Hyundai's confident forecast in part comes from its strong performance in China, where its Japanese rivals saw car sales plummet due to territorial disputes and anti-Japanese sentiment.

Chief Financial Officer Lee Won-hee said during a conference call that Hyundai revised its sales estimate in China from 790,000 units to between 820,000 and 830,000 for 2012, acknowledging that the troubles faced by Japanese carmakers had benefited their rivals.

Hyundai said its net profit fell 15 percent from the April-June quarter to 2.16 trillion won (US$1.96 billion). It was Hyundai's first quarter-on-quarter drop in profit for a year. The result, which matched forecasts, was still a 13-percent rise over a year earlier. Operating profit fell 18 percent from the second quarter to 2.05 trillion won on revenue of 19.65 trillion won.

Hyundai blamed reduced output and lower demand in the South Korean market for the quarter-to-quarter drop in profit.

The company's labor union in South Korea staged partial strikes in July and August, demanding increased wages and an end to overnight shifts.

Hyundai estimated the labor union's refusal to work some regular and overnight shifts resulted in lost output of 82,000 vehicles worth US$1.5 billion. The company and the union agreed on a deal last month that reduced working hours and eliminated overnight shifts.

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